Should I Extend My House Or Move In 2018?

As a UK homeowner, there may come a time when space in your home begins to run tight and you need to think whether to move or extend. Whether you’ve a growing family or you’re a successful home entrepreneur, you’re likely to find that you need to evaluate your current position, and typically this boils down to a choice of moving house or extending your property.

There are many considerations you’ll need to take into account, from how much it costs to extend a house vs the expense of moving house, to the amount of disruption to your home and lifestyle, and that’s just for starters.

To help guide your decision making, here are some factors you might want to think about first before making up your mind…

Cost

If you’re thinking about whether to move or extend, the financial cost of each project must be weighed up against the perceived value of each option.

With the average cost of extending a house in Cheshire or Merseyside equating to roughly £1,200 per sq metre, a large rear extension could result in significant expense initially. Alternatively, when moving house, the costs can seem never-ending. House prices. Solicitors fees. Tax. Removal firms. The cost of moving house is not a decision to be taken lightly.

However, if the new extension suits a specific purpose, such as a wet room or an external office, or the extension allows you to remain in a preferred location or near to family and friends, then these benefits will out value the financial outlay of a build.

Using architectural design services, can be a cost-effective way of managing the budget of any extension. A detailed building plan will help to inform accurate costings and ensure that builders have a guide to help them stay on track. A good design that features energy saving features, will ensure your home is more efficient saving you money in the long run.

Time

A typical extension build can take several weeks, depending on weather conditions, and can mean disturbance to the household routine during this time. However, a house sale can take anything up to a several months, reliant on the home-buying chain, which can also end in disappointment should the sale not go through for whatever reason.

Space: If you’re looking to add another bedroom, or set up shop in a home office, you’ll need to assess the space you have around your property, taking access to light, boundary walls, and planning permission into consideration. Architectural design services can help to make the most of the space you have, getting creative with those little nooks and crannies and putting them to good use.

If the space around your existing home is inadequate to accommodate your plans for the future, then a move may well be the only solution on the cards.

Location

With towns in the North West, like Widnes, Runcorn and St Helens becoming increasingly popular places to live for commuters, now could be a good time to capitalise on your existing property. Just a quick jaunt around the areas, like Widnes, Warrington, or Liverpool, that surround the M62, reveals a network of new build housing estates lining the North West corridor, providing plenty of options for moving into a newer, bigger home.

Or, for homeowners in Halton and Merseyside, it could be worth investing in your own property, by adding an extension that will offer you more space but allow you to benefit from living in an area with good amenities, or a high-performing school, for example.

Refresh and renovate

If you simply fancy a change, your home could have a facelift, without blowing your budget. Working with your homes current appearance, architectural design services can also enhance the external features, updating them sympathetically to modernise their appearance whilst maintaining the overall aesthetic of the local area.

So, whether you decide to extend or move, you’re going to need architectural design services. Contact Fairtech for an informal chat to talk through your ideas for finding more space at home within your budget, or to conduct a measured building survey to help you complete the contract on the new home of your dreams.